minime
August 5th, 2005, 12:40 PM
:ohno: here we go.....
Construction standards warning
United Arab Emirates: Tuesday, November 23 - 2004 at 09:07
UAE construction firms are using substandard quality concrete with a reduced service life, a building design expert has warned. Dr Abdul-Rahim Sabouni, President of the UAE Chapter of the American Concrete Association, says the Middle East construction sector needs to take a more professional approach, with better codes of practice and quality control.
source: http://www.ameinfo.com/49192.html
Middle East construction boom will collapse without better concrete quality and protection
Sabouni, who is President of the UAE Chapter of the American Concrete Institute, and a building design expert at Abu Dhabi Works Department, was speaking on the first day of the Annual Concrete Technology and Corrosion Protection Conference, held as part of Gulf Construction Conference week, at Dubai's Emirates Towers hotel.
Sabouni highlighted that the service life of reinforced concrete is significantly lower in the UAE than in other parts of the world.
"There is a tendency to use a 'trial and error' approach to materials and processes which have not been standardised or fully tested."
"These processes are applied without supervision, leaving poor results. A more professional approach is needed, with special attention to the entire design construction process."
Sabouni told more than 50 delegates that the root of the problem lies in a number of factors, including the harsh, high salinity of the local environment, designers specifying concrete in an insufficient manner, and a workforce dominated by expatriates with differing qualifications, knowledge, training and experience.
"There are no national design codes and practices in place, there is vagueness in construction liability and overall regulation of the construction decision-making process is not well-defined," he said.
He stressed that poor quality concrete is often chosen at the design stage, and then corrosion inhibitors added at a later stage, rather than a proper concentration on the initial quality of the concrete used.
"While most designers and contractors do appreciate the importance of specifying concrete for durability, their specification is often improper, due to a lack of awareness of the different types of concrete."
And while Sabouni suggested the addition of substances such as fly ash and blast furnace slag greatly decreases concrete permeability, adding these substances is difficult and requires careful monitoring.
"In this market, if something is difficult to do, they simply tend not to do it," he said.
Meanwhile, keynote speaker Mike Walker, Consultant and former Technical Manager of the UK's Concrete Society, explored the ways in which concrete can be protected, with specific reference to the local market.
"The concept of concrete protection must be established at every stage of the production process, and the first line of defence has to be in choosing good quality concrete in the first place," he said.
Gulf Construction Conference Week brings together more than 70 global thought leaders and almost 400 delegates, to listen to four separate conference streams, covering Aluminium and Glass, Insulation, Concrete Technology and Corrosion Protection and Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning.
The Concrete Technology and Corrosion Protection event ends on Tuesday, November 23. It includes papers, presentations and discussions by speakers from the GCC, Canada, Australia, the UK, Germany and Jordan.
The lively five-day conference event, now in its second successful year, brings together industry thought leaders with regional and local construction industry players, in an informal environment designed to share knowledge, further the professionalism of the industry as a whole, and create a stronger, more sustainable and commercially viable Gulf-wide construction sector.
Gold sponsor of the whole event is Saudi Arabia's ALUPCO, the largest aluminium extrusion and surface treatment company in the Middle East.
Gulf Construction Conference Week is staged in association with Gulf Construction magazine, the undisputed leading trade journal for the building and construction industries in the gulf. It is supported by, and strategically positioned alongside, the Big 5 exhibition, the most important and biggest building, building services and construction event in the Middle East. In 2003, the Big 5 attracted some 27,000 visitors from all over the world.
The four events are sponsored by a number of leading regional and international companies, including ALUPCO, Jotun Powder Coatings, Installux Aluminium, Alukbond, Stremler Glass Hardware, Arabian Fiberglass Insulation Company (AFICO), Terraco UAE, SPM Thermo-Shield® Inc. and VTS Clima.
They are also supported by a number of leading organisations, including the UAE Contractors' Association (UAECA), American Concrete Institute (ACI-UAE Chapter), the Concrete Society and ASHRAE's Emirates Falcon Chapter (ASHVE).
source: http://www.ameinfo.com/49153.html
Construction standards warning
United Arab Emirates: Tuesday, November 23 - 2004 at 09:07
UAE construction firms are using substandard quality concrete with a reduced service life, a building design expert has warned. Dr Abdul-Rahim Sabouni, President of the UAE Chapter of the American Concrete Association, says the Middle East construction sector needs to take a more professional approach, with better codes of practice and quality control.
source: http://www.ameinfo.com/49192.html
Middle East construction boom will collapse without better concrete quality and protection
Sabouni, who is President of the UAE Chapter of the American Concrete Institute, and a building design expert at Abu Dhabi Works Department, was speaking on the first day of the Annual Concrete Technology and Corrosion Protection Conference, held as part of Gulf Construction Conference week, at Dubai's Emirates Towers hotel.
Sabouni highlighted that the service life of reinforced concrete is significantly lower in the UAE than in other parts of the world.
"There is a tendency to use a 'trial and error' approach to materials and processes which have not been standardised or fully tested."
"These processes are applied without supervision, leaving poor results. A more professional approach is needed, with special attention to the entire design construction process."
Sabouni told more than 50 delegates that the root of the problem lies in a number of factors, including the harsh, high salinity of the local environment, designers specifying concrete in an insufficient manner, and a workforce dominated by expatriates with differing qualifications, knowledge, training and experience.
"There are no national design codes and practices in place, there is vagueness in construction liability and overall regulation of the construction decision-making process is not well-defined," he said.
He stressed that poor quality concrete is often chosen at the design stage, and then corrosion inhibitors added at a later stage, rather than a proper concentration on the initial quality of the concrete used.
"While most designers and contractors do appreciate the importance of specifying concrete for durability, their specification is often improper, due to a lack of awareness of the different types of concrete."
And while Sabouni suggested the addition of substances such as fly ash and blast furnace slag greatly decreases concrete permeability, adding these substances is difficult and requires careful monitoring.
"In this market, if something is difficult to do, they simply tend not to do it," he said.
Meanwhile, keynote speaker Mike Walker, Consultant and former Technical Manager of the UK's Concrete Society, explored the ways in which concrete can be protected, with specific reference to the local market.
"The concept of concrete protection must be established at every stage of the production process, and the first line of defence has to be in choosing good quality concrete in the first place," he said.
Gulf Construction Conference Week brings together more than 70 global thought leaders and almost 400 delegates, to listen to four separate conference streams, covering Aluminium and Glass, Insulation, Concrete Technology and Corrosion Protection and Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning.
The Concrete Technology and Corrosion Protection event ends on Tuesday, November 23. It includes papers, presentations and discussions by speakers from the GCC, Canada, Australia, the UK, Germany and Jordan.
The lively five-day conference event, now in its second successful year, brings together industry thought leaders with regional and local construction industry players, in an informal environment designed to share knowledge, further the professionalism of the industry as a whole, and create a stronger, more sustainable and commercially viable Gulf-wide construction sector.
Gold sponsor of the whole event is Saudi Arabia's ALUPCO, the largest aluminium extrusion and surface treatment company in the Middle East.
Gulf Construction Conference Week is staged in association with Gulf Construction magazine, the undisputed leading trade journal for the building and construction industries in the gulf. It is supported by, and strategically positioned alongside, the Big 5 exhibition, the most important and biggest building, building services and construction event in the Middle East. In 2003, the Big 5 attracted some 27,000 visitors from all over the world.
The four events are sponsored by a number of leading regional and international companies, including ALUPCO, Jotun Powder Coatings, Installux Aluminium, Alukbond, Stremler Glass Hardware, Arabian Fiberglass Insulation Company (AFICO), Terraco UAE, SPM Thermo-Shield® Inc. and VTS Clima.
They are also supported by a number of leading organisations, including the UAE Contractors' Association (UAECA), American Concrete Institute (ACI-UAE Chapter), the Concrete Society and ASHRAE's Emirates Falcon Chapter (ASHVE).
source: http://www.ameinfo.com/49153.html